Note: This is a continuation of a Draft last edited on December 15th, 2008.
I’ll be honest here about the Alphabetical Ipod Experiment. I “cheated” a couple of weeks ago on the experiment, and ended up listening to a couple of albums while doing overtime at work a few Saturdays ago. When I told a few co-workers about the experiment a while back, they thought about it, and realized that it is quite limiting. If anyone actually stuck with one shuffle until the end of the shuffle, (with the exception of getting a smaller sized Ipod shuffle) then they would be listening to the songs on their iPod for days, weeks or even months on end. A diet of only what you already have is by definition limiting.
However, the wonderful thing about music nowadays, is that there is always additional options for listening to music besides the now traditional Itunes + Ipod = Music equation. I have long used Pandora from time to time for new music recommendations based off of similar artists, and have recently began a Last.FM account, after knowing about that service for quite some time. There are many other streaming sites out there, including Rhapsody for one, but realistically, most people only have a couple of places they look for music. For many, Itunes is where they look for purchasing online music. For even more people of my generation, the “black market” of file sharing sites is where they look for the latest albums that are just coming out.
However, the wonderful thing about these new possibilities for music, means that there are now more ways than ever to discover music. In a few years, we may be able to access music from a cloud in the sky, or a server that holds all the titles wee may want, like a large library where you simply pay to be a member. It seems crazy, but it’s closer in reality to happening than some may think. That’s the concept behind file sharing websites. But how would you be a working musician from a small slice of this pie in the sky idea? That’s where we need to think outside the box and truly get creative. In the meantime, feel free to check out my stuff on Last.FM, my latest music discovery platform:
http://www.last.fm/music/Matt+Jasper
Draft completed on January 1st, 2008 – Welcome – Denali (off of The Instinct) (7033 out of 7625)
